Midwestern Work Ethic

Matt and I have both noticed this in the past few weeks: people here work hard and take things seriously.

I noticed it immediately on a professional level - I swear, every one of my colleagues seems to be almost "collecting" certifications. Whereas in San Francisco it was just fine to be of a particular bent in your work, here it seems to be expected that you'll jump through the hoops required to be a certified practioner of any given technique. I am not inclined to do so myself while the boys are so young (these certifications tend to be extremely expensive and take years to accomplish), but I have never seen so many of my colleagues doing so before. I have had to get over the initial pressure I felt to do the same.

So last night when Matt went to his first improv class in Chicago, I had a suspicion that it was not going to be like the one in San Francisco at BATS. Sure enough, he reported that it was very different. Sounds like perhaps it will involve more serious learning and less random silliness. I'm sure, though, that whatever random silliness there is will be initiated by my husband.

Anyway, as we talked about these things last night we realized that we are not on the loosey goosey West Coast anymore where (nearly) anything goes. It makes me extra grateful that Matt still works for a San Francisco office and I work for myself. To a certain extent, we can come and go as we please, and I'm really appreciating that.